Improvement Technician Apprenticeship
Learn practical problem-solving tools and use them on a real improvement project at work.
Discover the Improvement Technician ApprenticeshipBuild the team your organisation will need tomorrow. PMI-Capella helps you recruit apprentices aged 16 to 24, trains them in the problem-solving, leadership, quality, data and AI skills that improve how work gets done, and supports their line managers from day one. Training is fully funded for under-25s at non-levy employers. For young people, it’s a paid route into a career with a nationally recognised qualification, and no previous qualifications are needed.
PMI-Capella helps employers recruit, train and keep apprentices aged 16 to 24. We help you define the role, promote your vacancy and choose the right candidate, then support your apprentice and their line manager from day one. We talk regularly with early careers and talent leads at national employers, and the same themes come up again and again. They shape how we support every apprentice and manager.
Nearly one million young people aged 16 to 24 in the UK are not in education, employment or training (ONS (opens in a new tab)). An apprenticeship gives them a paid job and a recognised qualification at the same time, and gives you skilled people shaped around your business.
Eligibility rules apply. See our funding changes page for the details.
Yes. Every apprentice under 18 has a young learner risk assessment at the start, and our trained specialists provide additional safeguarding and wellbeing support. Apprentices aged 16 to 18 who haven’t passed English and maths at Level 2 work towards them as part of the programme, and employers can claim an incentive payment for this age group.
Yes. The Level 4 Agile Operations Leader apprenticeship (the Process Leader standard) covers managing performance, coaching and mentoring, using KPIs, project management and continuous improvement. It sits under engineering and manufacturing, so it is often overlooked, but our version works in any sector and is a natural next step after a Level 3 apprenticeship.
We give line managers practical guidance, involve them in a progress review every 12 weeks, and flag early if their apprentice needs extra support. Our Delegate Support Specialists can step in where needed.
Tell us straight away. With young apprentices, a missed shift can be a sign of something bigger happening outside work, and they may not call in. Our safeguarding and wellbeing specialists can help you check in, agree next steps and follow safeguarding procedures if needed.
Yes. We can help you define the role and skills you need, promote the vacancy, showcase it at careers events, and run assessment and selection.
Yes. Our AI and Automation Practitioner apprenticeship works with Google Workspace tools as well as Microsoft Power Automate, Zapier and n8n, and we’ve delivered in-house AI and automation learning for a large retailer that uses Google Workspace.
PMI-Capella offers six apprenticeships for people early in their careers, in improvement, data, leadership, business analysis, quality and AI. All are paid jobs with funded training, and none need previous qualifications or experience.
Learn practical problem-solving tools and use them on a real improvement project at work.
Discover the Improvement Technician ApprenticeshipLearn to collect, analyse and present data that helps your organisation make better decisions.
Discover the Data Technician ApprenticeshipLearn to lead a team, manage resources and drive continuous improvement using KPIs.
Discover the Agile Operations Leader ApprenticeshipLearn to analyse processes, data and requirements to help your organisation deliver change.
Discover the Agile Business Analyst ApprenticeshipPlan, assure and improve quality, and lead a real quality project, using training materials approved by Toyota.
Discover the Quality Practitioner ApprenticeshipSpot opportunities to automate work and apply AI tools responsibly to deliver real results. No coding needed.
Discover the AI and Automation Practitioner ApprenticeshipNot sure which is the right fit? Speak to our dedicated team and we’ll help you find it.
If you’re aged 16 to 24 and starting your career, an apprenticeship gives you a paid job, a recognised qualification and the support to succeed. Our Young Learner Promise sets out what every PMI-Capella apprentice gets, so you’re never left to figure it out alone.
Your own Apprenticeship Tutor, a Programme Manager and a review every 12 weeks.
A one-to-one chat about your goals before your training begins.
We check what you need at the start and put it in place.
Safeguarding, mental health and wellbeing support from trained specialists.
Planning your next step from day one, not left until the end.
PMI LIVE events, industry speakers and fellow apprentices.
Help talking to your manager, speaking up and managing your time.
Extra support to pass them if you need to, with up to seven extra days.
Kacie wasn’t sure what she wanted to do after school. Two years on, she shares what her apprenticeship was really like, in four short videos.
Question: If you met a 16 or 17-year-old who was thinking about an apprenticeship but wasn’t sure, what would you say to them?
Kacie: I would definitely say go for it. If they were unsure, that is exactly the same boat that I was in. I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I looked at sixth forms, I looked at colleges, but I knew that wasn’t 100% something I wanted to do. But I also didn’t know what career I wanted to go into. I can genuinely only say positive things about my apprenticeship course. I learned so much through it, and it was absolutely the right decision for me.
Kacie: My confidence since I started has massively improved. I can’t say I’d be doing this two years ago when I was 16. You still get nervous for presentations. You get nervous for anything, I think, in early careers. But my apprenticeship exposes you to so much that you can learn, and you realise that everyone wants to learn, especially in an apprenticeship. You’ve got people around you doing the same thing. When I was an apprentice, I was constantly learning. And when I wasn’t having my apprenticeship day or doing my off-the-job training, I was teaching what I’d learned to my team. It created a community for me where I could learn, teach others, and it improved my confidence massively.
Kacie: I can genuinely only say positive things about my apprenticeship course. I learned so much through it, and it was absolutely the right decision for me. I got so much support from my workplace at Barclays, but also from my learning provider. Any questions I had, anything I was worried about, I had that support the whole time.
Kacie: Within my work, I’ve been given so many opportunities to show what I’ve learned, and nothing I learned in my apprenticeship has gone to waste. Even when I haven’t put myself forward, other people have recommended me: “Kacie knows how to do that.” Because I’ve been put in there, I’ve gone for it and it’s gone really well, because you have the skills and the behaviours. You just need the confidence to get yourself involved, or to show other people that you can do it. Since I started two years ago, I’ve done so many things that I feel proud of, that I genuinely can’t say I could have done without doing the Improvement Practitioner course.
Kacie wasn’t sure what she wanted to do after school. Two years on, she shares what her apprenticeship was really like, in four short videos.
Choose a video
An apprenticeship lets you earn a salary and gain a recognised qualification at the same time, with no tuition fees. University is the right route for careers that need a degree first. Here’s how they compare.
| Question | Apprenticeship | University |
|---|---|---|
| Do you get paid? | Yes, from day one. At least £8.00 an hour, and many employers pay more. | No. Most students take a maintenance loan or work part-time. |
| Who pays for the course? | Your employer and the government. No fees, no loan. | You, usually through a tuition fee loan you repay once you earn over a set amount. |
| What do you get? | A nationally recognised Level 3 or Level 4 qualification, in 9 to 18 months. | A degree (Level 6), usually after three years. |
| Work experience | A real job and a real project on your CV from the start. | Placements or internships on some courses. |
| Where next? | Level 4 apprenticeships and beyond, all the way up to degree level, while you keep earning. | Graduate jobs or further study. |
Most of your week is spent doing your job. Your training happens during paid working hours, through live online sessions, 1:1 coaching and short on-demand lessons, and ends with a final assessment.
A careers conversation about your strengths, interests and goals, so you begin on the right programme.
A launch event, study skills, staying safe online and cyber awareness, so you feel ready.
Live online training with expert consultants, 1:1 coaching, a progress review every 12 weeks, and PMI LIVE events that can count towards your learning time.
Show what you’ve learned, for example by presenting the improvement project you delivered at work.
Your certificates, a conversation about your next step, and the chance to move up to the next level.
Level 3 is the first step, not the last. Choose where you’d like to go to see the route, then select a step to find out more. You keep earning the whole way.
Where do you want to go?
Start as an Improvement Technician, then step up to Agile Operations Leader to manage people, resources and performance.
Start as an Improvement Technician, then step up to Agile Business Analyst to shape how your organisation changes.
Start as an Improvement Technician, then step up to Quality Practitioner to plan, assure and improve quality.
Start as a Data Technician, then step up to AI and Automation Practitioner to automate work with AI.
Everything young people and their families usually ask us, from pay and qualifications to what happens if things get tough. No previous experience is needed, and our team is happy to talk it through.
Can’t see your question?
Speak to our dedicated teamYes. An apprenticeship is a paid job, so you need an employer as well as a training provider such as PMI-Capella. If you already work somewhere, talk to your manager, and join one of our information sessions to find out how it works. If not, search for Level 3 improvement technician or data technician jobs on GOV.UK’s Find an apprenticeship service.
Yes. Apprenticeships are open to anyone aged 16 or over, and our early careers support is designed for young people aged 16 to 24. You can apply whether you’ve just left school or college, started university, or been out of work for a while. If you already hold a qualification, an apprenticeship at the same or a lower level is usually still possible, as long as it teaches you substantial new skills.
Yes. Many of our apprentices are in their first job. Alongside the technical training, we help with the parts of work nobody explains: communicating with your manager, speaking up in meetings, managing your time and building confidence. You’ll have a dedicated Apprenticeship Tutor and a progress and coaching review every 12 weeks, so you always have someone to ask.
Good questions include: What does a normal day look like? Who will my line manager be? Is there an induction for apprentices, and will I have a buddy or mentor? How will my training time be protected? What did your last apprentices go on to do? The answers show how well an employer supports young people.
It’s a different route, not a lesser one. A Level 3 apprenticeship is at the same level as A levels and comes with real work experience employers value. Apprenticeships go all the way up to degree level, so you can keep progressing while you earn. In an Association of Apprentices survey of 4,503 apprentices, 98% of those who had completed were in continuous employment afterwards.
Employers must pay at least the apprentice rate of the National Minimum Wage, currently £8.00 an hour, if you’re under 19, or 19 or over and in your first year. After your first year, apprentices aged 19 or over must get at least the minimum wage for their age, currently £10.85 an hour at 18 to 20 and £12.71 at 21 and over. Many employers pay more, and the salary is shown on every vacancy.
Not you or your family. Training is paid for by the employer and the government, so there are no course fees and no student loan.
At Level 3, Improvement Technician takes nine months plus your final assessment, which makes it one of the shorter apprenticeships available, and Data Technician takes 15 months plus assessment. At Level 4, Agile Business Analyst and Quality Practitioner take 12 months, and Agile Operations Leader and AI and Automation Practitioner take 18 months, each plus assessment. Most of your week is spent working, and training always happens during paid working hours.
Level 3 is the same level as A levels. Level 4 is a higher apprenticeship, at the same level as a Certificate of Higher Education (the first year of a degree). Neither needs previous qualifications or experience, and our team will help you work out which is the right fit for you and your role.
No specific qualifications are needed. If you’re 16 to 18 and haven’t passed English and maths at Level 2 (GCSE grade 4 or above), you’ll work towards them as part of your apprenticeship, with up to seven extra days of support at no cost. If you’re 19 or over, English and maths qualifications are optional.
Every young apprentice has a risk assessment at the start, learns about online safety and Prevent, and knows exactly how to raise a concern. Trained specialists provide safeguarding, mental health and wellbeing support, and we give line managers guidance on supporting young people at work.
Your tutor holds a progress and coaching review every 12 weeks, with your line manager involved, so problems are spotted early. We can add extra coaching, adjust support for learners with SEND, and connect you with our wellbeing specialists or other services.
You receive your apprenticeship certificate plus an industry certificate (a Yellow Belt at Level 3, a Green Belt at Level 4). After Level 3, you can carry on with your employer and step up to a Level 4 apprenticeship such as Agile Operations Leader, Agile Business Analyst, Quality Practitioner or AI and Automation Practitioner.
Yes. Live training sessions are online, so there’s no daily travel to a college. Live sessions can be translated into other languages as they happen, and on-demand lessons can be viewed in any language.
Whether your young person is 16 or 24, choosing an apprenticeship is a big decision for both of you. Here’s how apprenticeships work, and how PMI-Capella looks after young people from their first day.
We don’t simply train young apprentices. We help them become confident professionals.
Source: The BIG Apprentice Survey Report, Association of Apprentices, based on 4,503 apprentices across the UK.
Pick the option that fits where you are right now.
Talk to us about recruiting or developing apprentices aged 16 to 24, and the funding available.
Lots of apprentices start with the employer they already work for. Join a free online information session to find out how it works and how to raise it with your manager.
Search GOV.UK for “improvement technician”, “data technician” or “quality practitioner” apprenticeship jobs near you.
Got questions about apprenticeships, pay, support or safety? Our dedicated team is happy to talk them through with you.
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